Metuo Palam Acerbus
by Enigmatic Magus
Summary: Fate's gaze falls upon Earth, her shadowy fingers reaching out to embrace the planet in a vicelike grip. Nerima is but a name to her and her diabolical machinations, and Ranma finds just how tenuous his reality truly is.
1. Chapter 1

"Look Ranma, a shooting star!"  
  
"Hmm," said martial artist muttered, glancing along the line his (reluctant) fiancée indicated just in time to watch the speck of light disappear beyond the horizon.  
  
A moment later a muted whistling noise grew on the wind, briefly rising before disappearing abruptly. Thinking nothing of it, Ranma and Akane made their way through the gates of the Tendo Dojo, eager to sit down to the dinner they could smell on the evening breeze.  
  
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Metuo Palam Acerbus By: Taiteki Kagato  
  
Disclaimer and Authors Notes posted at the bottom.  
  
Warning: Graphic scenes of violence and unsettling situations ahead. Read at your own discretion.  
  
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Three weeks since witnessing the shooting star, Ranma Saotome paced by the door, wondering where Akane was. That morning, Kasumi had run to the market against her family's warnings, and after lunch time had rolled by without her return, Akane had run out to find her sister. Now, as bedtime approached, Akane too, it seemed, was missing.  
  
Nabiki Tendo, sister to Akane and Kasumi, daughter of Soun, and future sister-in-law to Ranma, watched the news with morbid curiosity, hoping that the current report had nothing to do with the tardiness of her sisters.  
  
For the past week, an alarming number of people, children, adults, men and women, had been disappearing, apparently chosen at random. Even more unsettling, perhaps, was that the kidnapper was able to take people at all times of the day. There was very little evidence to go by, and the only information the police had given had clearly indicated that they were as baffled as the rest of the populace.  
  
Very little proof of a struggle was ever found, and only one victim had been found so far, the body stashed in a trash heap and mutilated so thoroughly that only after DNA testing had the remains been identified.  
  
Hugging her knees to her chest, but not daring to close her eyes, Nabiki watched for any information she might have missed. When the disappearances had started, Nabiki, along with the rest of Nerima, had shrugged it off, figuring that anyone kidnapping in Nerima would quickly come to a rather violent end.  
  
After a week and twelve disappearances, none of the citizens were shrugging it off anymore. Schools had been closed down, a curfew had been put into effect for Nerima and the surrounding wards, and an invisible-yet-palpable tension filled the air.  
  
All eyes turned to the Ranma as he cleared his throat. Akane had asked him to stay here, and to trust in her, but she'd not returned, and his patience was at its end. Before he could say anything, however, the door to the porch collapsed, atop of which lay a moaning, bleeding Shampoo.  
  
"Airen... they... Mousse..." Shampoo said through clenched teeth. Staring in shock, the rest of the Tendo's tried to understand why she looked somewhat different, but only after Nabiki spoke did they accept what they had previously dismissed as impossible.  
  
"Oh my god... her.. her Arm! Where the hell..." Nabiki collapsed to the floor, and the others could hear retching from where she'd disappeared behind the couch. However, they dismissed that as they realized that Nabiki was right. Shampoo's left arm, curled up against her chest, was nothing beyond the elbow but a shredded, ragged stump slowly oozing blood onto the shattered remains of the door.  
  
Soun and Genma gaped, while Ranma leapt across the room, gently scooping Shampoo up and moving her over to the couch.  
  
"Don't just stand there!" He shouted, shocking the two out of their trance. Soun hurried over, ripping the sleeve off his gi to use as a makeshift tourniquet, and Genma ran to the phone, quickly calling the hospital.  
  
Ranma, stepping aside as Soun tied the cloth around her upper arm tightly, took the moment to examine Shampoo closely, before shuddering as he realized just how bad off she was. Looking past the missing arm, he noticed gashes that tore through muscle tissue and exposed the ivory of her ribs when wiped clean. Her lower right leg was obviously broken, and from the bruise he could see on her thigh, her femur might be fractured as well. One eye was swollen shut, and her right hand was spotted with holes, almost as if she'd been showered with molten metal.  
  
"Who the hell could do this to Shampoo?" Ranma asked softly, as Genma appeared with clean cloth and the first aid kit. Nabiki, meanwhile, was holding back dry heaves as she tried to rationalize the situation.  
  
"Shampoo... no... Aire-Ranma... Ranma... " Shampoo called weakly.  
  
"I'm here, Shampoo. There's an Ambulance on the way. Just stay with us." Ranma said, placing his hand on her shoulder gently, and frowning as she winced at even that light pressure.  
  
"Mousse... taken... Monsters took... Great...." Shampoo's voice was fading in and out, now, and her eyes, already dazed and dilated, were rolling slowly in her head, failing to settle on anything. The sound of sirens rose over the television, and the residents breathed a metaphorical sigh of relief, knowing Shampoo would soon be taken care of by proper medical personnel.  
  
Suddenly, her eyes fell on Nabiki, who'd been peering over her father's shoulder in morbid fascination. For a moment, her eyes lost the wild, shocked look, and Nabiki felt her blood turn to ice in her veins as Shampoo's gaze turned to the cold, lifeless pits no Hollywood Makeup Artists could pull off.  
  
"We all going to die." She stated calmly, moments before the young Amazon began convulsing.  
  
Watching the ambulance disappear into the night, Ranma stared up at the cloudy night sky, then looked over his shoulder at the room behind him. Nabiki sat at the table, staring at the wood so intensely Ranma expected it to catch fire. Soun and Genma were walking around, too upset to attempt a game of Shogi.  
  
"I'm going out to look for them," he declared suddenly, before disappearing outside. Leaping to the compound wall, then to a nearby rooftop, Ranma ran towards the market, where he assumed Kasumi and Akane had last been seen.  
  
Running across the rooftops, Ranma stared down at the streets of Nerima with no small degree of surprise. While it was true that nighttime meant less activity in a suburban area like Nerima, the streets were usually lightly peppered by the late-shift workers, late night movie-goers, and the like.  
  
Staring down at the utterly barren ribbon of asphalt, illuminated only by harsh amber streetlights, Ranma shuddered. He'd grown up alone, and knew what loneliness was. But that was in the middle of nowhere, a forest or a mountaintop. Here, in the middle of a city, the silence was unnatural. Oppressive.  
  
Landing on a roof overlooking the small paved opening in which vendors sold their wares by day, Ranma looked down at the barren stalls, wondering where to search from here. He knew he should search the area for clues, but exactly how to do that, he was uncertain; he was a martial artist, not a detective. Still, he decided to search the first thing that caught his eye, and began scrutinizing the plaza from his vantage point.  
  
Seeing nothing, he was about to leap down, when he heard s soft splash come from somewhere over to his left. Moving over to the side of the building, he realized there was a narrow, dark alley, and the noise he'd heard had come from within. Staring down, he realized that none of the lights shone directly into the alley, leaving the majority in almost total darkness.  
  
Leaping down, Ranma landed haphazardly on a surprisingly slippery uneven surface, wobbling momentarily before regaining his balance. Staring at the ground as if it had purposefully offended him, he realized he'd landed with one foot on a large metal disk, obviously used to cover the large open hole near by. Scowling at opening and the various unpleasant smells that filled the alley, Ranma reached down to replace the manhole cover, only to stop when he noticed something else lying near the opening.  
  
Crouching over the familiar-shaped object, Ranma realized after staring at it for a moment that it was a policeman's badge. He'd seen them in near- darkness enough times during his training trip to place it with only a brief moment of scrutiny. Glancing at the manhole once more, he stood up.  
  
The splash he'd heard was probably the officer in the sewers below. The badge had been left out so that anyone who thought to close the manhole knew there was someone below. Now, Ranma faced a new dilemma. Should he go down into the pitch black (not that this was much better) Nerima drainage system, and offer assistance to the police officer?  
  
Whoever had gotten Shampoo could probably tear a poorly-trained Policeman to shreds, but most people tended to think twice about taking on a law officer of any type, for the repercussion of such an action was almost always an over-the-top manhunt.  
  
The sound of air being sliced by something decidedly sharp was the only warning Ranma had, leaping away from a descending blade. Landing warily, he watched his silent attacker slip on the manhole cover as he had earlier, before righting themselves.  
  
"Look, buddy, I don't know who-" He started, only to be interrupted.  
  
"Ranchan?"  
  
"Uc-Ucchan?"  
  
Ukyo Kuonji, her battle spatula held high, have a quick "yip" of laughter, before she dropper her combat stance and leaned against the wall, panting heavily.  
  
"God, Ranchan. I thought you were..." She trailed off, the relief evident in her posture. Ranma nodded softly to himself, before straightening up and walking over to join her.  
  
"What're you doing out here, Ucchan?"  
  
"Looking for you, Ranma. What'd you think? I went by the dojo, and they said you were out somewhere... is... is it true? About Akane and Kasumi? And Shampoo?" Ukyo's voice had grown softer and more worried, and Ranma closed his eyes as he nodded again.  
  
"Everything they told you is true.. probably worse, from what the paramedics said when they took Shampoo away."  
  
"God... I..." Ukyo said, unsure of how to express the shock that had gripped her heart. Ranma, understanding her reaction, merely placed his hand on her shoulder, then looked up at the clouds that threatened to burst above them.  
  
"Ukyo... Ucchan... You should go home. Stay with Konatsu, where it's safe. I'm sure he's worried sick about you al-"  
  
"Konatsu's gone."  
  
"He WHAT?" Ranma shouted in surprise.  
  
"No! Not... He went home... one of his sisters went missing, and..."  
  
"You mean, you're staying alone? With all this going on?" Ranma asked, incredulously. Ukyo blinked.  
  
"Umm, yeah. I'm not totally defenseless. I mean-"  
  
"Ukyo, you didn't see Shampoo. She was..." Ranma sighed, "look, stay with me, and we'll swing by your place before we go back to the Dojo... I don't want anyone else staying alone if I can help it."  
  
Ukyo blushed lightly at Ranma's apparent concern, then frowned at her own behavior, realizing the situation was far too serious to think about anything but the missing Tendo's. She stood up, nodding once, before looking out at the street.  
  
"So, where to?"  
  
"I want to swing by the Nekohanten real quick... see if there's any clues there."  
  
"Alright," Ukyo said, softly. She watched Ranma leap from wall to wall, quickly reaching the roof of the lower building bordering the alley. Crouching to follow, Ukyo glanced at the opening in the ground as a tomcat within hissed at something or other before leaping off the walls as Ranma had.  
  
She landed beside him just in time to witness a fireball blossom a few blocks away. It dissipated rapidly, the orange and red blast turning into black smoke almost immediately, and Ranma and Ukyo began running in that direction. That was when the rain started to fall.  
  
The two girls arrived at the origin of the explosive, and Ranma gave a little sigh before muttering quietly, "I knew there'd be a problem."  
  
The Nekohanten blazed before the couple, rain hissing angrily as it fell on heated building materials. The sound of approaching sirens reminded Ranma of Shampoo, and earlier, evoking a small shudder, and the two teens watched the fire truck round the corner and approach the burning restaurant quickly.  
  
"Well, I doubt we'll find much here, Ranma..." Ukyo said finally. Ranma looked at the firemen scrambling around below, and turned away from the burning wreckage that had once housed a rival, a teacher, and, most importantly, friends. Nodding silently in the pouring rain, she turned away, Ukyo pausing to watch the flames a moment longer before turning to follow.  
  
The two decided to try spiraling inward towards the market from the Nekohanten, and took off, searching through the rain quickly and quietly. Scouring the roads for any hint of Akane or Kasumi they could, both teens found searching for anything in a pouring rainstorm yielded poor results. Still, they searched on, twice spotting moving shadows that, to their dismay, turned out to be nothing.  
  
Finally, after two hours, the only concrete thing they had found was how miserable a couple hours of searching in the driving rain could be. Neither one wanted to admit defeat, but when they arrived back at the opening to the alley where they'd met that night, Ranma and Ukyo locked gazes for a moment before taking off towards the Ucchan's.  
  
Ranma waited diligently in the doorway, not wanting to get water all over the place. Ukyo hurried around her apartment upstairs, grabbing a couple changes of clothes, and throwing them into a waterproof bag, which she quickly slung over her shoulder.  
  
Grabbing a mop and quickly wiping up the water on her way back to the door, she locked the restaurant up, and she and Ranma headed for the dojo. Entering silently, the two made their way to the bathroom, hoping the furo would help warm their rain-soaked bones before they caught a cold.  
  
Ranma, still a girl, told Ukyo to go ahead first while she went to get some dry clothes. As the redhead walked out the door, Ukyo quickly disrobed, and washed herself quickly, before practically leaping into the furo. Sighing softly as the heat seemed to melt away the cold and tension from the outside in. She tried to relax, but knowing that Ranma was in a similar state, she groaned, stood up, and quickly dried off, slipping into the rolled Kimono she'd managed to stash inside her bag.  
  
A moment later, there was a soft knock on the door, and Ranma called through the door softly: "Ukyo, you finished?"  
  
"Yeah, Ranchan. It's okay, you can come in now."  
  
The door opened to admit the redhead, who was wearing a towel over her shoulder, and a pair of dripping boxers. Ukyo frowned slightly, then rolled her eyes, slipping towards the door. However, before she could exit, Soun stepped in.  
  
"Ranma! Did you find... Ukyo! What is the-" Soun trailed off as he stared at Ranma's bare chest. Rolling her eyes, Ranma stepped into the furo, her chest loosing any appeal it might have had to Soun.  
  
"Thank you. Where was I?"  
  
"'What is the,'" I think, Ukyo offered softly.  
  
"Oh yes. Ranma! What is the meaning of this? You go out to look for Kasumi and Akane, and you return with Ukyo?"  
  
"It's not like I didn't look-" Ranma started.  
  
"'WE,' Ranchan," Ukyo corrected.  
  
"Err, yeah, we both looked, but we didn't find anything. Anything at all," Ranma stared down at the floor as he finished, and Soun's anger began to fade. Before he could ask, however, Ranma continued.  
  
"Konatsu left Ukyo, and, well, I didn't want to leave anyone alone, so I told her she could stay."  
  
"Mr. Tendo, I'm sorry to intrude. I... I'll go back to my place now, and tomorrow, Ranma can come get me to help him search for your daughters," Ukyo said, bowing apologetically.  
  
Soun looked at her in surprise, then shook his head, "no, Ukyo, it's alright. Ranma was right. You can stay in Akane's room tonight."  
  
Ukyo nodded, bowing and thanking him as she withdrew from the room. Soun looked at Ranma like he wanted to say more, before sighing and walking out the door. Ranma sat down, tossing the towel over the changing room door, and shivered as the heat drove the cold deeper, before vanquishing it completely.  
  
After he'd reached a more comfortable internal temperature Ranma stood, briefly stretching out the muscles the hot water had loosened. Making his way quickly to the room he shared with his father, he slipped into some fresh clothes, and climbed into his bed.  
  
Tossing and turning, however, was the only thing he could accomplish, and finally he sat up, staring at the pouring rain outside the window for a moment before climbing to his feet.  
  
"Akane," he whispered to himself, a shiver going up his back. What was he doing, trying to sleep, while Akane- 'And Kasumi!' he reminded himself- were both out there somewhere.  
  
"You're going to go look for them again, eh?" someone asked from the doorway. Ranma grunted, the answer rather obvious.  
  
"Don't worry, Sugar, I understand. We were probably thinking the same thing."  
  
Ranma turned to look at Ukyo, and blinked as he realized she was dressed in her Okonomiyaki-seller's/fighting outfit, spatulas ready. She walked into the room and stood beside him, before turning her gaze towards the window and the rain beyond. Neither of them said anything, for a moment, and finally, Ranma moved to get something a bit warmer on.  
  
"Don't go."  
  
Ukyo and Ranma both froze as a new voice spoke from out in the hallway. Nabiki walked in, looking somewhat pale in the muted light leaking in from the window. The streetlight was far enough away that, with the rain, any illumination it provided was practically ephemeral.  
  
"I... we have to," Ranma said, finally.  
  
"What's the point?" Nabiki retorted harshly. Ukyo's jaw dropped, and Ranma glared at her. His mouth opened to speak, but before he could say anything, Nabiki continued, "Don't forget, Saotome, that Akane was my sister LONG before she was your fiancée."  
  
"Then why...?" Ukyo asked, softly.  
  
"Because, it's pitch black out there, it's pouring rain, and you're both nearly exhausted. I doubt you could find much more than a street light in these conditions. Wait until the morning, and I'll make some calls. Everyone who owes me anything will be here to help you two search. We'll turn Tokyo upside down if that's what it takes to find my sisters."  
  
"I... I don't..." Ranma started, hesitantly.  
  
"Sao... Ranma... You may not realize it, but Daddy and I... and Mr. Saotome too, I think, wan... need you here. We both saw Shampoo... whoever did that to her, if they got to us..." Nabiki trailed off as she hugged herself, shivering despite the relative warmth of the room.  
  
"Please wait, Ranma," Nabiki said, finally. Ranma was about to protest again, when he saw the tears glimmering in the dim light, and realized that Nabiki was truly scared; frightened even. Taking a step back, his movements echoed by Ukyo, who'd noticed the tears as well, Ranma stared at the floor, holding back the retort to this seemingly unprovoked attack, and finally nodded in defeat.  
  
However, before Nabiki could disappear, he spoke, "you'd better make those calls... we're getting up early-"  
  
"Six O'clock," Ukyo interjected swiftly. Ranma nodded, continuing, "And we're leaving to look for her at..." he paused to think of a good amount of time to give everyone, before speaking again, "seven-thirty. Enough time for anyone who's serious to get here, no matter where in Nerima they are."  
  
"Fine." Nabiki said, her tone business-like once again. She backed out of the room, and disappeared down the hall, leaving Ranma and Ukyo alone with a snoring Genma-Panda.  
  
Ukyo looked at the window, briefly considering searching alone, since only Ranma'd given his word, before turning towards the door. From what she'd understood, Shampoo'd been utterly defeated, and while Ukyo knew she was better than the Chinese Amazon, she seriously doubted she could handle someone that managed to defeat Akane, Shampoo, Mousse, and most likely Cologne, as well. Vowing to go on a lengthy, intense training trip when this ordeal was all over, Ukyo slipped out the door, and headed for her room.  
  
Ranma watched Ukyo go, and knew she wished to continue searching almost as much as he did. But, despite Nabiki's apparent fear, the middle Tendo had managed to keep the two anxious fighters inside for a night he knew would relinquish little (if any) sleep. Sliding back under the covers, Ranma closed his eyes, and surprisingly fell asleep almost immediately.  
  
"KASUMI! AKANE!" someone shouted, jolting the residents of the house out of their uneasy slumber. Ranma glanced at the clock, which read "5:57", before jumping to his feet. Running towards the stairs, Ranma heard a cough come from below that sounded exceedingly familiar. Forgoing the stairs and leaping to the floor below, Ranma was greeted to the sight of both 'missing' Tendo daughters sitting down and sipping what looked like tea.  
  
"A-Akane!" He said, relief flooding through him. She was disheveled, wet, and looked flushed, but none of that mattered, as to him, she looked absolutely wonderful. Tearing his gaze from her, he realized Kasumi was in a similar condition, and moved towards the table to sit down and find out where they'd been.  
  
Genma, Ukyo, and Nabiki also joined the no-longer missing sisters at the table, while Soun emerged from the kitchen a moment later with more tea, some of which he used to turn Genma back into a human.  
  
"What?" Ukyo finally queried, while Nabiki asked "how?" at the same time.  
  
Both sisters glanced at each other before Ranma spoke, "Where the hell have you two been?"  
  
Akane looked down at her tea, coughed as if to get the attention she already had more than enough of, then replied softly, "I don't know."  
  
"You don't know... or you don't want to say?" Nabiki asked, a sinking feeling in her stomach.  
  
"I... Akane and I... We're not really sure where we were. Or what happened," Kasumi said, softly. Nabiki worried more, but hesitated to say any more.  
  
"But, I mean, you have to remember something! I mean, how'd you get here?" Ukyo said, hitting the table with her palm, and causing everyone sitting around it to jump. She blushed and settled back down, thankful nobody seemed surprised by the outburst, and after a moment of awkward silence, Akane spoke again.  
  
"The first thing I remember is waking up in... a room. It was dark, and I was tied up somehow..."  
  
"Some sick bastard is going to pay," Ranma stated evenly, his fists clenched.  
  
"Oh, my! It's past Six! I have to get breakfast started!" Kasumi said, climbing quickly to her feet.  
  
"Kasumi! Don't worry about breakfast, I'm sure we can go without making you work for one morning," Soun said, finally breaking his silence. While his tears of joy were still cascading down his face, his back was straight, and he looked 20 years younger than he had the night before.  
  
"That's right, Hon. I can cook this morning." Ukyo said, standing up. Kasumi, however, would have none of it.  
  
"But, that would be improper and rude of me! I promise, Father, I feel fine. Just a sore throat. I actually feel better than fine!"  
  
"Are you sure?" Nabiki asked, looking for any sign that someone had forced their way on her older sister. Seeing none, she sighed, while Kasumi nodded.  
  
"Well, then... I suppose if you insist... Akane, what else do you remember?"  
  
"Well, like I said, it was dark, and I was tied up, but I managed to pull my arms free after a while-"  
  
All conversation stopped as Kasumi appeared to collapse. The Tendo's and Saotome's moved seemingly as one over to where she'd hit the floor, everyone asking if she was alright at once. Kasumi's face was flushed, and she had a large, worried frown on her face. Then she started screaming.  
  
Not words, or in fear, these were soul-rending screams of utter pain, and the collective group of would-be-helpers took an unconscious step back as she began writing on the floor in obvious agony.  
  
"Kasumi!" Soun cried, when he realized she was having some sort of seizure. He stepped forward, taking her flailing hand in his before yelling at those gathered behind him to call for help. Kasumi stopped struggling for a second, her beet-red face covered in sweat, then she moaned. It didn't last, however, as the moan grew into a roar, and suddenly there was a muffled tearing sound, and Soun felt moisture coat his face. Blinking, he looked down in horror, as Kasumi shuddered, her chest heaving, as something seemed to push out of the tear visible through her ripped blouse.  
  
Everyone, even Soun, stepped back in utter horror as a worm-like 'thing' slithered its way out of Kasumi's bloodied clothing, and coiled up on her chest. It snarled at them then, its eye-less head looking around the room briefly before springing itself towards Soun, who was closest.  
  
Soun shrieked as it did so, then shrieked again as the creature wormed its way into his gi. He began jumping around in a way that would almost seem comical, had the creature causing the commotion not just chewed and punched its way out of Kasumi's chest. However, when Soun stopped jumping around, and started screaming, a bloodstain above his right hip suddenly growing large, the macabre entertainment ended.  
  
Nabiki fainted, and Genma stood still, unsure how to help his friend without getting attacked by the horrific little demon himself. Akane was switching back and forth from bawling and retching in the corner, and Ukyo simply joined Nabiki on the floor.  
  
Ranma stood frozen, much like his father, until he realized Soun was being eaten alive, and he had to do something. Moving as fast as he could, he tore Soun's gi off, which exposed a ragged, oozing hole in the older man's side, the tapered tail of the creature still visible. It curled up as Ranma exposed it, like some grotesque, alien finger beckoning to a lover.  
  
Ranma wrapped his hand around it and pulled, surprised at how much of a fight the little worm-like demon put up. Still, after a short fight, only the head remained inside, and Ranma blanched as he saw that there was a dark red organ of some sort in its teeth. Before he could consider what to do, the creature bit down, tearing a large chunk of flesh from the organ, which began to bleed profusely. Soun collapsed then, and Ranma threw the worm across the room as it began twisting around to bite at him.  
  
" Kijin Raishuu-Dan!" Ranma heard Genma shout, the elder Saotome launching a vacuum blade across the room, which bisected the worm-thing into two gory, pale pieces.  
  
"What the fuck was that!?" Ranma shouted, as steam started rising from the split body. Soun collapsed beside his eldest daughter's corpse, blood slowly pooling under him. Genma approached the dead creature cautiously, yelping involuntarily as he tried waving the steam away and his hand suddenly began stinging, like he'd put it in fire.  
  
Staring at his hand like he'd never seen it before, he watched it slowly swell and turn an angry red, the stinging pain spreading up his arm somewhat before stopping. A faint hissing noise tore his gaze from his hand back down to the creature, which he now realized was leaking some sort of acidic fluid all over the floorboards. Said acid was quickly eating a hole in the floorboards which steadily grow, until the creature's parts disappeared into it.  
  
Ranma watched the milky acidic fumes waft from the edges of the hole and shuddered, before turning to Soun and Kasumi. He felt his gorge rise as he looked at the confused terror frozen on Kasumi's lifeless face, before turning his gaze to Soun. The Tendo Patriarch was trembling, unconscious, and a sickly pale-yellow, prompting Ranma to run for a phone.  
  
Quickly dialing the hospital for another ambulance, he decided, wisely, to tell them there were two training incidents, mentioning the Dojo name, before giving the address, and hanging up.  
  
"Akane, put pressure on your father's wound, I've got to see if that thing is really dead."  
  
Akane sat there, quivering in the corner, and staring down at the puddle of mucous and vomit she'd managed to heave up.  
  
"Akane.." Ranma said, softer. Still no response whatsoever.  
  
"Akane, Look, I know this is... this is hard for all of us, but your father needs to be taken care of, and Someone needs to make sure...Akane?"  
  
As he moved closer, he heard her mumbling softly, but only after he'd gotten right up next to her, did he realize she was praying almost too quickly to comprehend.  
  
Sighing, he moved over to Soun, hoping the creature was truly dead, before putting pressure on the gaping wound in Soun's side. Genma finally made his way to the kitchen, making a bowl of ice and placing his hand in it. He hoped whatever that acidic stuff was, treating it like any other burn would help it.  
  
Taking stock of the situation, he kneeled beside his son, his face ashen, before speaking.  
  
"I'll take care of Soun... I think, son, it'd be best if you moved your Fiancée, Ukyo, and Nabiki out of the room." Ranma nodded, and stood up as Genme slid his hand under Ranma's to keep pressure on the ragged wound.  
  
Ranma glanced at the unconscious Nabiki and Ukyo, then the confusing Akane, before sighing and turning to look at Kasumi. Shuddering once, and feeling his eyes tear up, he hesitantly approached her, keeping his gaze on her face, and not her chest, before kneeling over her, and closing her eyes gently. Shivering again, he backed away hastily, before turning away and moving towards Akane.  
  
"Akane... lets get you to your room."  
  
She continued praying, again giving no indication she'd heard him. He repeated himself a little louder, to which she continued ignoring him. He sighed, and placed his hand on her shoulder, gaining a reaction he'd not expected.  
  
With a loud sob, Akane flung herself at Ranma, hugging him so tightly the breath was forced from his lungs. Ukyo and Nabiki awoke to this, and slowly sat up, looking around in surprise.  
  
They both spotted Kasumi and Soun at the same time, but both reacted differently. Nabiki started hyperventilating, the floor seeming to move beneath her as she fought to stay conscious. The floor rippled in her vision, and only after staring at it did she realize she was crying. Then she broke down, her ice-queen façade shattering utterly, and began crying in earnest. Ukyo, unable to tear her eyes away from the gaping hole in Kasumi, crab walked away from the body swiftly, not stopping after she reached the wall, and pushing ineffectively at the floorboards as she tried to get more distance between her and the body.  
  
Akane sucked in a ragged breath, before sobbing loudly again, and Ukyo jerked her head over to look at the distraction, finally able to tear her eyes from the gruesome scene.  
  
Akane began mumbling incoherently and rapidly, and Ranma tried in vain to make sense of it all. Ukyo, watching Akane hold Ranma tight, felt none of the jealousy she would have if this situation were not so grim. Instead, her vision went blurry, and she stiffly crawled over to the two, holding back the tears until she was embracing the two as well.  
  
Akane continued mumbling, but Ranma wrapped his arm around Ukyo, giving her a thankful look that she totally missed as she cried along with Akane. Ranma opened his eyes as he felt another arm wrap around him, and spun quickly, only to find Nabiki joining in the mass hug.  
  
It seemed like forever, but finally, the sound of sirens were heard in the distance, slowly growing louder, until they stopped outside the compound. Running inside, the paramedics spotted the prone figures right away, and rushed over, only to stop in horror as they finally got a good look at Kasumi.  
  
"Dear god..."  
  
"What the fuck..."  
  
"I can see into her goddam chest!"  
  
The three paled when the realized the crying mess in the corner was staring at them in horror and disgust, before quickly shutting up. The three quickly surrounded Soun's body when they realized he was the one in need of immediate medical attention, the younger girl obviously dead.  
  
While two of the paramedics began working on Soun, the third pulled Genma aside, intent on asking what had happened. Then he looked at Genma's hand. The swelling had immobilized the hand, and blood was now dotting his hand as it forced it's way through the skin.  
  
"God, this looks like... hmm... Have you been working with any strong acids or alkalis recently?"  
  
Genma stared dumbly down at Soun, until the paramedic spoke louder, "Sir?"  
  
Jumping, as if he'd been slapped, Genma turned to the hole in the floor, the smoky vapor no longer rising from within.  
  
"Smoke from that fluid, I.. what..." Genma muttered.  
  
Moving towards the hole, his eyes widened considerably as he realized it wasn't cut from the floor, but eaten, as if an incredibly strong acid had been spilled here. Looking down, he saw that one of the support struts for the house was totally eaten through as well, the darkness under the house swallowed up anything else that had been damaged.  
  
The paramedic nodded to himself, reaching for his walkie-talkie and calling ahead for some Calcium Gluconate Gel be readied for their return.  
  
The other two had managed to bandage Soun's wound, but the look they gave each other was one of little hope. The body below them was almost drained of blood, and from what they could see of the wound, whatever had gotten into his side had made a mess of his internal organs.  
  
Getting Genma to go along with them was a bit of a hassle, but Ranma's reassurance that they'd be okay, and the throbbing purple mess of his hand finally convinced him, and with a promise to return as soon as possible, the ambulance took off.  
  
Before the siren could fade into the distance, the faster siren of a police car grew, approaching rapidly. A minute later, a Police officer stepped him, reacting similarly to Kasumi as the paramedics had.  
  
Regaining his composure, he radioed for the coroner, and moved towards the huddled mass of children, intent on finding out what the hell had happened.  
  
"Excuse me... Kids? I'm Officer Nakahara, and I need to ask you a few questions..."  
  
An hour later, the officer closed his notebook in disgust. Akane and Nabiki's elder sister was lying dead with a gaping hole in her chest, and they kept talking about monsters for Mars or something.  
  
The younger sister, 'Akane' her sister had told him, hadn't spoken at all, leading Nakahara to believe they were hiding something, and she might be his way of finding out what had really happened.  
  
Upstairs, in Nabiki's room, Ukyo and Ranma tried getting Akane to speak, with no luck. Finally, Nabiki stopped them.  
  
"It won't work."  
  
"Wha?" Ranma said, turning to her with a frown, "Well, I'm not going to just give up! Why the hell aren't you trying anything?" Ranma nearly shouted, realizing Nabiki'd gotten very cold once the huddle downstairs was broken up by the nosy policeman.  
  
"Akane..." Nabiki said, her voice quavering, "Akane..." this time it broke, and the final syllable came out as a hoarse whisper.  
  
"Nabiki, what's wrong?" Ukyo said, not understanding. Ranma looked at Akane, then Nabiki, confused, and Nabiki growled, tears falling down her face again.  
  
"Don't you get it? Akane was with Kasumi. In the SAME PLACE! At the SAME TIME!" Both Ukyo and Ranma stared at Nabiki, then leapt back from Akane as realization hit.  
  
"No... no no no nononono-" Ranma started, sinking to his knees in horror.  
  
"Akane..." Ukyo whispered, before putting her hand to her mouth, tasting bile in the back of her throat. Both felt their eyes go watery.  
  
Akane suddenly looked at Ranma, her face transforming from panicked fear to a lifeless look of resignation.  
  
"Kill me."  
  
Ranma felt like he'd been kicked in the stomach. Thinking back, he'd been feeling it since this nightmarish day had started, but this time, he felt something spiritual break. He began breathing heavily, the air in the room suddenly growing cloyingly thick. Ranma felt like he was fighting for each breath; as if the atmosphere had suddenly decided not to relinquish the oxygen within.  
  
"What?" he asked weakly, panting.  
  
"Kill me, Ranma. Before... before..." she trailed off, and looked at the door, mentally looking past it, at her dead sister, currently being carried away inside one of the black bags that, up until this morning, she'd only seen in movies.  
  
"Akane, I..."  
  
"Damnit Ranma! How hard a request is this! I didn't ask you to marry me, and you sure as hell aren't my idea of the perfect guy, but I love you, and I can't... I want... " She trailed off, shuddering for a moment before breaking down into quiet sobs, and Ranma watched, helpless, as Akane cried, each breath bringing her closer to her last.  
  
"I.... You..." Ranma sighed, then looked at the floor, before continuing, " Akane, I know you didn't... want this relationship, and, well, I know I've not been the best guy at times.. but I.. I don't think I can. I.. I Love you too much to take your life."  
  
Ukyo didn't react at all to this, instead staring at Akane with wary sorrow. When Akane turned to her, Ukyo jumped slightly.  
  
"Then... Ukyo, could you.."  
  
"No!" The chef shouted, falling back as her legs gave out from underneath her. Akane kneeled on her bed, and stared at the comforter below her, tears steadily falling towards the center of her vision.  
  
"So that's it, then? You're going to let me die Like Kasumi... Like..." She shuddered and sobbed again, pausing to cough, to which Ranma, Ukyo and Nabiki inched back until she stopped.  
  
"Akane." Nabiki said, finally. When Akane failed to acknowledge her, she repeated herself a little louder, " Akane."  
  
Akane looked up, and Nabiki stared into her eyes, trying to memorize every feature while she still could, before turning around and moving towards her closet. Pulling a false panel out of the wall, and quickly spinning the dial of a small wall safe, she swung the well-oiled door aside quietly, reaching inside before pulling something small and black out.  
  
It took a moment before Ranma realized he was looking at a small, deadly, and very illegal revolver. Ukyo gasped as she realized what she was looking at as well, and Nabiki fumbled with the weapon for a moment before finally opening the cylinder and making sure it was as unloaded as she'd left it.  
  
"Nabiki..." Akane said, softly.  
  
"I can't... I won't do it... but this is the most painless way I can think of, if you can find someone capable of pulling the trigger." Nabiki reached into the safe, and pulled out a speed loader, removing one of the bullets before putting it back. Handing both to Akane, Nabiki's façade melted, and she embraced her sister, crying on Akane's shoulder while Ukyo and Ranma still tried to grasp what Nabiki had just offered.  
  
Nabiki pulled away from Akane for a moment, before turning to Ranma and Ukyo, and asking them to leave for a few minutes.  
  
"You aren't..." Ukyo started, staring at the weapon lying on the bed beside Akane. Nabiki shook her head no, then shut the door, leaving Ukyo and Ranma alone in the hallway.  
  
Officer Nakahara suddenly appeared at the top of the stairs, and Ranma and Ukyo turned to him when he cleared his throat.  
  
"More questions?" Ranma asked, scowling. The officer had the courtesy to blush, and Ranma sighed, stepping towards the officer and away from the door. When he and Ukyo had gotten closer, Nakahara spoke in hushed tones, wringing his hands together. He hated giving bad news at a bad time, but it was his job to.  
  
"I... I regret to inform you that Mr. Tendo passed away in the hospital after a lengthy battle in the OR to save him. From what I was told, it was a combination of blood loss, shock, and some sort of trauma to the liver."  
  
Ukyo slid down the wall to the floor, while Ranma stood swaying on his feet as if he hadn't gotten any sleep in weeks. Apologizing again, Nakahara withdrew quietly, leaving them alone after handing Ranma a card with his cell phone number on it. Ranma stared at the floor, wondering what else would happen, before turning to look at Ukyo, who was staring up at him.  
  
"Well... we have to tell them..." Ranma said, finally. He turned to go, but Ukyo reached out and grabbed his leg, her grip so tight the feeling in his foot began fading almost immediately.  
  
"Not yet. Not... not Akane. Tell Nabiki, but you.. we.. shouldn't tell Akane."  
  
Ranma frowned, before pausing to think about it. Akane was... dying, and Ukyo wanted to give her some small bit of happiness before... Ranma shuddered, managing to turn the final shakes into an exaggerated nod, before Ukyo let him go, and slowly climbed to her feet.  
  
=====================  
  
Disclaimer: Rumiko Takahashi owns Ranma ½. The Aliens series is owned by 20th Century Fox. I'd like to thank Rumiko Takahashi and Ridley Scott, James Cameron, David Fincher, and Jean-Pierre Jeunet for making such wonderful worlds.  
  
Authors Notes: Holy geeze, was that fun to write. Yet to come is the conclusive part two, in which more stuff happens. This story came about after reading the fic Predator and Prey, by Benares, and realizing to my dismay that there were, as far as I could tell, no Aliens crossovers with the Ranma-verse.  
  
The reasoning behind such a lack was somewhat confusing because, despite the difference in story-type, weirder, less-likely crossovers have been and will (most likely) be made. So I figured I'd give it a go. Unfortunately, after thinking up an outline, I realized I had fallen into a trap that was only apparent once I wrote out the first few scenes. Deciding to go for broke, I re-wrote the outline, which ended up much more like this.  
  
Hopefully it was as shocking to you all as it was to my pre-readers, who I'd like to thank.  
  
Nathan Huss (Wakoid2), Parker Schadegg (Mikhal001R), and Anthony, Thanks for all the help. Nathan also wishes to express that he had no influence on my decisions of who died, and that he doesn't think this story will be well received, whatsoever.  
  
Please C&C as I can't expect to get better without it.  
  
-Kagato 


	2. Chapter 2

=====================  
  
Metuo Palam Acerbus By: Taiteki Kagato  
  
Disclaimer and Authors Notes posted at the bottom.  
  
Warning: Graphic scenes of violence and unsettling situations ahead.  
Read at your own discretion.  
  
=====================  
  
Akane Tendo looked around her room, attempting to memorize every aspect  
of it. Quietly, she reacquainted herself with the overlooked, the under-  
used, the plain and ordinary.  
  
Sitting down on her bed, she ran her hand along the comforter, letting  
the texture imprint itself in her mind as it had done when it was new,  
before years of sleeping under it had rendered the memory inappreciable.  
  
As she moved over to her desk, Akane picked up a photograph of her and  
her sisters, in which the three of them were smiling happily before the  
camera. Ignoring the blurring of her vision, she reached out to trace  
the lines of Kasumi's face, before staring at Nabiki; Nabiki, who would  
soon be an only child.  
  
Replacing the photo, Akane left her room to rejoin Ukyo, Nabiki, and  
Ranma in the hallway. The three stopped talking when she approached, and  
she shuddered as she saw the mixture of fear and sorrow in their eyes.  
To them, she was already as good as dead, and the worst thing was, aside  
from a sore throat, she didn't feel bad at all. Truth be told, she felt  
better than fine; colors were brighter, sounds were richer, everything  
was almost too good to be true. When Kasumi had collapsed, then birthed  
that "thing," Akane realized just how untrue everything was.  
  
"So, have you decided?" Akane asked flatly.  
  
"God, I can not believe we're having this conversation," Ranma muttered,  
echoing everyone else's thoughts on the nightmareish conversation they  
knew they were about to have.  
  
Ukyo stared at the floor, while Nabiki kept shifting her gaze from one  
spot on the wall to another, never looking anyone in the eye. Closing  
her eyes, she cleared her throat, earning her some distance from  
everyone else, before whispering softly.  
  
"Please?"  
  
The three shivered at her barely audible plea, and what it represented.  
  
"There's gotta be a way to-" Ukyo started, hopefully. She was cut off  
before she could get anywhere.  
  
"-To what? Cut it out? You want to walk into a hospital and explain this  
to them? You saw the police officer, Ukyo, you know what they'll do,"  
Nabiki snapped.  
  
"Well we can't just give up!" Ranma shouted.  
  
"Maybe we could-" Ukyo said frowning. Again Nabiki cut her off, this  
time with a sharp humorless bark of laughter.  
  
"Ha! Using what, your spatulas?"  
  
Ignoring the tears Nabiki had crawling down her cheek, Ukyo scowled  
before retorting just as loud, "well we have to do something!"  
  
"Like what?"  
  
"Maybe if we kill it..." Ranma said, quietly.  
  
"You saw what it did to the floor when it died, Ranma," Akane said  
quietly.  
  
Ukyo hugged herself, leaning against the wall before summing up, "what a  
fucking nightmare."  
  
The hallway fell silent as everyone became somewhat introspective.  
Finally, Ranma straightened up, his eyes determined.  
  
"Lets go."  
  
"Go where?" Akane asked, her voice flat.  
  
"To the last place you can remember," Ranma said evenly. Akane started  
to protest, before finally shrugging and walking down the hallway. Ukyo  
and Nabiki followed the two outside, the cool air still dark as low  
hanging clouds threatened the area with rain once again.  
  
"I don't remember where I was, but I remember bits and pieces of... I...  
I helped Kasumi through a hole in the school..." Akane said, trailing  
off.  
  
"Then what?" Ranma asked, still walking. When Akane didn't answer, he  
turned around, only to see Akane panting heavily as she leaned up  
against a streetlight. One hand was being used to support her, while the  
other covered her sternum. Beads of sweat dotted her forehead, and Ranma  
took an involuntary step back, before squashing his fears and moving  
towards her.  
  
"Akane, is it...?"  
  
The girl nodded once before collapsing, her eyes pinched shut. Ranma  
caught her and lowered her to the ground. Fumbling, her hands shaking,  
Akane managed to reach into her pocket and pull something out. Ranma  
stepped back as he realized she was holding out the revolver Nabiki had  
given her.  
  
"Oh, god Akane, I..." he stammered, the blood pounding in his ears like  
war drums. Akane blinked and gazed up at him from the ground, her eyes  
watery and pleading. Ranma shuddered, and slowly reached out for the  
gun.  
  
"Ra-Ranma... p-p-please..." Akane forced out between ragged breaths and  
gasps of pain. She could feel something moving behind her ribs, biting  
tentatively at the flesh it could reach. It was like nothing she'd ever  
felt before, excruciating and unknown.  
  
Ranma watched her jerk, the tears pouring from her eyes as he took the  
pistol and pointed at her. Akane saw Ranma do this as if through a  
tunnel of pain that grew longer with each passing second. She was beyond  
hearing now, the blood roaring through her ears and drowning everything  
else out.  
  
Through red flashes of pain, she saw Ranma, with his eyes closed,  
seeming to wordlessly mouth "I'm sorry," before she closed her eyes  
against the unbearable pain. Images flashed through her mind rapidly,  
her friends, her family, her sisters, and finally, she saw her mother,  
smiling, reaching out to embrace her. Akane managed to say "I love you"  
one last time, before the world dissolved into painless nothingness.  
  
Ranma jumped as the weapon went off him his hand. Tears cascaded down  
his face and the gun fell from numb fingers as he collapsed, a wail of  
anguish escaping his lips and rocking Nerima.  
  
Suddenly, Ranma stood, his battle aura bursting into existence around  
him. Cupping his hands together, he gathered all the emotions he was  
experiencing, and fired it at Akane's twitching body.  
  
"Happa Risai!"  
  
There was a flash of light, and a low, ominous rumble, and Ranma  
collapsed again, feeling the cool asphalt underneath his cheek.  
  
"I love you too, Akane..." He whispered.  
  
"MURDERER!!!" someone screamed from nearby. Peeling one eye open, he  
caught sight of a foot moments before his chest exploded in pain, and he  
felt himself go airborne.  
  
"Ryouga, no!" Ranma heard Ukyo shout, moments before he landed, the  
rough pavement biting into his skin.  
  
Ryouga was beyond listening. He'd rounded a corner on the way to the  
Dojo, intent on telling Akane about the weird stuff going on outside  
Osaka, when he'd seen something that would haunt him forever: Ranma, a  
respected martial artist, using a gun on a pained, crying Akane, moments  
before vaporizing her body with a ki-blast. Thought and rationale had  
left Ryouga beyond that moment.  
  
Ukyo, who had been holding a crying Nabiki when Ryouga attacked, managed  
to get her between the two by then. "Move," Ryouga growled, taking  
steady, measured steps towards Ranma. Instead of complying, Ukyo pulled  
her battle spatula, falling into a defensive crouch.  
  
"Wait, Ryouga, there's a reason Ranma did that," she implored.  
  
"There is no possible explanation for what he has done. Move, Kuonji."  
  
"Damn it, you idiot, Akane was already dead!"  
  
Ryouga paused, then his scowl deepened, "I saw her crying. I saw the  
pain on her face as she cowered under him. I saw her tell him she loved  
him, and he shot her." Ryouga had reached Ukyo by then, and the chef  
suddenly found herself airborne, her head exploding in pain.  
  
"And you let him kill her!" Ryouga roared, raising his foot to crush the  
prone Ranma. Seeing Ryouga swat Ukyo away finally forced Ranma to act.  
He may deserve death for what he'd done, but Ukyo hadn't done anything.  
Rolling away at the last minute, Ranma heard the pavement buckle under  
the force of Ryouga's stomp, moments before shards of asphalt pelted his  
backside.  
  
Rolling to his feet before leaping back to put some distance between  
Ryouga, Ranma spared Ukyo a glance, in time to see her wipe a spot of  
blood from her lips. Turning back to the enraged brawler, the  
temperature around Ranma dropped, as he felt the rage boiling within  
Ryouga.  
  
With an inarticulate howl of anguish, Ryouga charged, his moves quick  
and powerful, forcing Ranma to use more speed than usual to evade them.  
Finally reaching the center of the spiral, Ranma's smile died, and he  
threw the uppercut. "Hiryuu Shoten Ha!"  
  
Ukyo had run for Nabiki when she realized what Ranma was doing, while  
the orphaned Tendo cried softly, unaware of the growing danger. Wrapping  
one arm around her, Ukyo grabbed onto the lip of a storm drain as she  
heard Ranma shout.  
  
Feeling the winds pick up, Ukyo's grip tightened, but the howl and tug  
of Ranma's most devastating attack never came. Cracking her eye open,  
Ukyo spied Ranma staring at Ryouga, who'd fallen to his knees before  
him.  
  
"Why?" Ryouga asked, staring up at Ranma with a vacant look in his eyes.  
Ranma's arms fell limply to his sides, and he stared at the ground. Ukyo  
walked up beside him, frowning at Ryouga before she actually saw the  
look of despair and anguish on his face.  
  
"..." Ukyo opened her mouth to speak, but nothing she could think of to  
say felt right.  
  
"Kasumi and Daddy are dead too," Nabiki said flatly. Ukyo's mouth  
snapped shut, and she and Ranma stared at the ground. Ryouga stared at  
the remaining Tendo in shock.  
  
"What!? But... How?" He finally stammered.  
  
"They... Akane and Kasumi..." Nabiki's voice failed her, and she stared  
imploringly at Ranma and Ukyo, incapable of finishing the retelling  
herself.  
  
"Akane..." Ranma whispered, his voice surprising Ryouga somewhat out of  
his depression. Before he could ask about Ranma's misery, Ukyo started,  
her eyes closed and her head turned to the side; unwilling to face or  
look at anyone or anything.  
  
"Akane had something inside her... whatever it was, she and Kasumi got  
them somewhere, and the one inside Kasumi..." Ukyo, too, felt unable to  
continue, and she swallowed audibly before clenching her fist until her  
nails bit painfully into her palm.  
  
"It burst out of Kasumi's Chest, and attacked Mr. Tendo, eating his..  
eating h- It.. the wound killed him, Ryouga. And Kasumi died.. it was...  
I can't..." Ukyo trailed off as tears poured from her eyes, and blood  
dripped from her fists.  
  
Ryouga stared at Ukyo, unwilling to believe the story she'd just told,  
but disturbed by the way she'd told it. Ranma and Nabiki's grief-  
stricken faces and winces as Ukyo's story reached a particularly grisly  
part also gave Ryouga pause.  
  
"So why was Akane crying? Why'd you shoot her?" Ryouga demanded,  
finally.  
  
"Because she asked me to!" Ranma shouted, before burying his face in his  
hands.  
  
"But-"  
  
"The thing was about to pop out of her chest, Ryouga!" Nabiki said, her  
voice hysterical. "You weren't there. You didn't see the look on  
Kasumi's face... hear her screams.. I... My own sisters... And Daddy  
too..." Nabiki collapsed again, the tears resuming their trek down her  
face. Ukyo and Ranma both glared at Ryouga, before sitting down beside  
the crying orphan.  
  
"Well... What did this thing look like?" Ryouga asked, finally.  
  
"Horrible" Ukyo mumbled, rocking Nabiki as she wept. They sat there for  
a moment; Ranma and Ukyo helping Nabiki through the total loss of her  
family, while Ryouga watched then in awe.  
  
Ukyo felt Ranma's rocking grind to a halt, and looked over at him, about  
to ask why he'd stopped. She realized he'd frozen up, his face draining  
of color. Following his gaze, Ukyo too seized up, as she spotted  
something taller than most men, and black as crude oil crawling along  
the wall of the building across from them, behind Ryouga.  
  
Nabiki, wondering why Ukyo and Ranma had both started shivering on each  
side of her, looked up and gasped as she saw the creature slinking  
across the wall as if gravity meant nothing to it.  
  
"Ryouga... turn around very slowly" Ukyo said, finally. Ryouga gave them  
a quizzical look before he complied, freezing up like the others had  
when he spied the obsidian creature.  
  
Its large, tubular head twisted on an impossibly thin neck, both sitting  
atop a skeletal torso. Four tube-like bony appendages extended from the  
creatures back, and its arms and legs were likewise encased in the  
chitinous armored carapace. Extending beyond it was a tail easily as  
long as the creature itself, and shaped like a series of gradually  
diminishing vertebrae. Ending it was a spade-shaped bladed tip that  
glinted dangerously in the dim overcast morning light.  
  
It stopped crawling suddenly, as if sensing their stares. Lifting its  
head off the wall, it turned as if to look at them, its eye-less head  
glinting ominously in the wan lighting.  
  
"Is this...?" Ryouga managed to say, backing away slowly. Ukyo, Nabiki,  
and Ranma stood up slowly, backing away as slowly as Ryouga.  
  
"I don't know. Maybe." Ranma said, pushing Nabiki behind him. Ryouga and  
Ukyo flanked him, hoping to protect Nabiki, when the creature opened its  
mouth to shriek at them.  
  
The shrill, unearthly sound caused the group to jump as one. Then the  
creature sprung at them, impossibly fast, its tail propelling it off the  
wall like a compressed spring.  
  
Ryouga and Ukyo leapt to the side, Ranma falling back atop Nabiki to  
protect her. He felt something slam down into his chest, hard, and  
coughed as the air was knocked out of him. Rolling off a dazed Nabiki,  
he stood up, then crouched defensively as the creature spun towards him.  
  
"Hey!" Ukyo shouted, launching one of her spatulas. The creature  
scurried back, avoiding the flying blade, as Ukyo pulled her large  
spatula from its place at her back. Ryouga had spotted the red of his  
umbrella in an alley near where the creature had emerged from, and  
hurried over to it while it was occupied. At the last moment Ryouga  
realizes something was wrong, and he dove away as a second creature  
landed where he'd stood; its tail poised to impale him if he had  
remained crouching over his bag.  
  
Leaping back onto the building it had dropped from, the second creature  
prepared to spring at Ryouga, before cocking its head to the side, and  
scurrying over the building, the tail of the thing disappearing over  
the edge almost before Ryouga had time to register it turning around on  
the wall.  
  
"Where...?" Ryouga said, keeping his gaze on the buildings bordering the  
alley as he removed his umbrella.  
  
"Hey! What are you kids doing out here? There's a curf-" the voice  
trailed off as the police officer it belonged to rounded the corner and  
saw the creature hissing at Ukyo, "-ew..."  
  
Ukyo's spatula was scratched deeply, the thing's claws digging deep  
furrows into the metal rapidly. Finally she got a glancing blow in,  
knocking the creature back. The thing opened its mouth, launching a  
yellowish fluid at Ukyo, who hid behind her spatula, then dropped it as  
a couple droplets of the fluid flew through the gashes and landed on her  
arm.  
  
Smoke and vapors rose from the melted spatula, and Ukyo backed away  
quickly, squeezing her arm above the acid burns, unable to do anything  
other than groan through clenched teeth as she felt the fluid  
liquidating the tissue around it.  
  
The officer stared in shock at the fight, pulling his baton and his  
walky-talky slowly. Before he could radio for backup, however, he heard  
something hard strike the cement behind him. Spinning quickly, he looked  
up into a dark mouth, silver teeth opening as viscous gelled drool oozed  
around the lethal metallic fangs.  
  
The baton fell from his fingertips as the officer whimpered, and Ryouga,  
who had seen the creature descend behind him, screamed for the man to  
move. Unable to do anything more than stare up at the metallic teeth, he  
watched with dread as they trembled, and suddenly something flashed out-  
  
Ryouga felt bile rise in the back of his throat when he heard the wet  
pop of the creature ramming something through the officer's forehead.  
Before the body could collapse, the creature grabbed the head, tearing  
it from the neck with a sickening wet sound, before probing the hole it  
had created almost tentatively with that odd inner-mouth. Realizing it  
was eating the man's brains, Ryouga lost it, hunching over as his  
breakfast spilled across the street.  
  
Ranma weaved back away from the first creature as it hissed and spat at  
him, like some demented caricature of his worst nightmare. He was slowly  
leading it away from Nabiki and Ukyo, who were trying to withdraw from  
the fight safely. Sparing them a glance, Ranma was knocked off his feet  
as the creature's tail came around and slapped against him.  
  
Climbing to his feet, Ranma felt where the tail had impacted; thankful  
it had only bruised his ribs and not broken them. The thing may not have  
tactics or fight like a martial artist, but its beyond-feral ferocity  
and ungodly speed made up for most of what it lacked in overall skill.  
  
Something glinted in the dim lighting, and Ranma spotted one of Ukyo's  
throwing spatulas lying in the grass where it had fallen earlier. Making  
his way over to it carefully, he scooped it up and let it fly, putting  
all his strength into a shot at the creature's chest. It hit with a  
satisfying chunk, and Ranma smiled grimly.  
  
His smile faded as he realized it had stuck into the carapace, instead  
of traveling through the creature, as it would have on most terrestrial  
animals. Moreover, it seemed to be coming loose as Ranma watched.  
  
Still avoiding swiping claws and the occasional tail, the pigtailed  
martial artist watched it hit the ground and sizzle, the part that had  
been imbedded a bubbling froth of dissolving metal, much like Ukyo's  
larger spatula. Yellowish fluid spurted from the wound as if  
pressurized, and Ranma realized he'd have to avoid that as well as the  
claws and tail now.  
  
Ryouga wiped his mouth swiftly, feeling something rise up behind him.  
Glowing a sickly green, he whirled, holding his hands out and screaming  
"Shi Shi Hokodan!" into the creature's face. A black and green ball of  
Ki grew rapidly between his cupped hands, growing from the size of a  
basketball to the size of a medicine ball in the blink of an eye. As its  
edges touched the creature, there was a soft fizzle, and the thing's  
face, arms, and chest were vaporized leaving the thing's back half to  
slump to the ground. Ryouga lowered his aim, and released the blast,  
wiping the remains of the abomination from existence.  
  
Ukyo watched Ryouga disappear behind a ball of light, and winced as she  
saw his smoking body emerge from the far side of the building his back  
had just been up against. The building itself collapse a moment later,  
the human projectile adding to the damage the explosion to its side had  
caused. Nabiki managed to tie Ukyo's bandolier around the acid burns and  
the two of them ran over to Ryouga's battered body, hoping he was okay.  
  
Ranma felt Ryouga's Shi Shi Hokodan go off, and scowled at the creature  
before him. Considering how dangerous simply damaging these things in  
hand-to-hand was, a Ki blast was about the only thing he could use to  
neutralize these things without taking any damage from the beast's  
highly acidic blood.  
  
Trying to build up his courage, he grimaced as he realized today had  
been too horrific to allow him to harness the emotion necessary for a  
Moko Takabisha. Unfortunately, before he could start harvesting the  
abundant depression, the creature began a new tactic, pouncing at him  
from a crouch like it had from the wall, keeping him on the move, and  
unable to power up. Apparently, while not the most intelligent  
creatures, it knew not to let him stand still.  
  
"Ukyo! Get Ryouga up! This thing won't let me blast it!"  
  
"He's out cold, Ranchan!" Ukyo cried back, watching her Fiancé dodge the  
creature, which was acting like a homicidal cricket at the moment.  
Ryouga groaned under her, and she glanced down, frowning at the blood  
that trickled from numerous cuts and burns he'd amassed.  
  
Ranma cursed under his breath as he dove out of the path of another  
pounce, wincing as the things tail managed to lash out and strike him  
again. If Ryouga couldn't, he'd have to resort to the Saotome Secret  
Techniques, which would be dangerous with the creature's body chemistry.  
  
Suddenly Ranma felt a buildup of depressive Ki behind him. Apparently,  
Ukyo and Nabiki had gotten Ryouga up, and the lost boy was charging  
another powerful blast. All he had to do now was lure the beast into it.  
Leaping back, his back towards the building blast, the creature pounced  
again, and Ranma fell back, giving Ryouga a chance to let fly...  
  
"Shi Shi Hokodan."  
  
Ranma blinked. That was not Ryouga. He was, however, shocked as a beam  
of black energy tore through the space he'd occupied moments ago,  
vaporizing the creature, and continuing on towards the clouds near the  
horizon. The beam flickered then, before shrinking to nothingness, and  
Ranma finally rolled over, in time to see Nabiki slump. Her clothes  
disintegrated, and Ranma realized she'd managed to pull off the blast  
through sheer luck, coming close to destroying herself in the process.  
  
"Nabiki?" Ukyo said, shocked. Ranma rolled over and crawled to his feet,  
moving over to Ukyo, who helped him move the two prone bodies away from  
the dust and debris of the collapsed building.  
  
Setting Ryouga down beside Nabiki, Ranma stared at the remaining Tendo  
curiously. Nabiki might have practiced the art in her youth, but she  
showed very little inclination to learning the higher forms of Anything  
Goes. What she had done was, to put it bluntly, impossible. Nabiki  
coughed then, and looked at Ranma through lit eyelids.  
  
"Why don't you take a picture, Saotome; it'll last longer." She coughed  
again, and Ranma frowned as he saw flecks of blood dot her lips.  
Suddenly realizing she was also naked, Ranma spun, and Ukyo moved off  
towards the destroyed building, returning with a length of cloth she  
quickly covered Nabiki with.  
  
"We should move, before any more of those things show up..." Ukyo said,  
softly.  
  
"Where?" wheezed Nabiki. Ryouga groaned, and Ranma wished he could throw  
some water in the lost boy's face to help bring him back to  
consciousness sooner.  
  
"We can go back to my place," Ukyo offered. Ranma looked at Nabiki, who  
nodded slowly, and picked Ryouga up, turning towards the Ucchan's.  
  
"Hold it right there!"  
  
Ukyo and Ranma turned, wincing as they stared into the blinding beam of  
a flashlight.  
  
Officer Nakahara nodded to himself as he radioed for backup. Another  
"incident" and these two were here again, about to leave the area with  
two unconscious, battered bodies.  
  
"Set those two down slowly, then raise your hands in the air," he  
commanded, his weapon drawn. The two, Ranma Saotome and Ukyo Kuonji,  
glanced at each other, then set the two bodies down, lifting their arms  
in the air. He scowled as Kuonji failed to raise one arm all the way,  
and grinned to himself as he saw the bloodied bandage on her arm.  
  
"So your latest victims fought back, eh?"  
  
"Wha- you think we're the kidnappers?" Ukyo said, incredulously.  
  
"As a matter of fact, I do," Nakahara said calmly as he heard someone  
running up behind him.  
  
"Good god! Masanto! They killed him!" someone said. Nakahara scowled at  
the two martial artists as another officer came up behind him.  
  
"These two the ones?"  
  
"Yeah. You say they killed Masanto?" Nakahara asked, frowning.  
  
"Ripped his head clean off, looks like. Sick fucks," the new officer  
said, aiming his weapon at the two, "Cuff 'em. If they so much as  
twitch, I'll pump them full of lead."  
  
"It wasn't us! It was the creatures!" Ukyo cried, as he handcuffed her.  
  
Nakahara rolled his eyes and snorted. "Right," he said, pulling Ranma's  
arms behind his back, " So where are they? Sunlight scare them off?"  
  
Ranma groaned as Nakahara harshly patted him down for weapons, grinning  
as he practically slapped Ranma's bruised ribs. Ukyo scowled, but said  
nothing, silently glaring at the police car as Nakahara moved to search  
her. She prepared to lash out if he so much as lingered at any one  
point, but he was professional in his search, turning the two around and  
ordering them to walk between them towards the station. As they left the  
area, three more officers rushed by towards Ryouga and Nabiki.  
  
As she watched Ranma and Ukyo get taken away, Nabiki tried to protest,  
but only succeeded in coughing up some more blood. Then a pair of rough  
hands touched her throat, feeling for a pulse. "This one's alive! We  
need an ambulance!" someone shouted right above her. Her ears rang at  
the abuse, and she groaned, the officer above her turning his gaze back  
at her.  
  
"You're safe now. Everything's going to be all right. Just stay with  
us." Nabiki groaned and nodded, deciding she could help Ranma and Ukyo  
soon enough. As darkness engulfed her vision, she heard the officer  
holding her began shouting for help, before the world went black.  
  
Nabiki awoke with a shout; feeling an IV in her arm and the cool, steady  
flow of oxygen into her nose from a tube taped to her face. Reaching up  
to tear the tube away, she looked around, recognizing the hospital room  
for what is was, and spotting a police officer watching her from a chair  
across the room.  
  
"Bad dreams?" he asked with a smile. She shuddered, not bothering to  
answer, and he stood up. "Let me go get the doctor, he told me to get  
him when you woke up." Nabiki didn't bother replying, simply staring at  
the IV in her arm, before pulling it out with a grimace. She began to  
crawl out of the bed, but someone cleared his throat from the doorway,  
the sound making her pause before he spoke.  
  
"That, young lady, isn't the wisest of choices. While you may be feeling  
somewhat better, you're still quite beat up inside."  
  
Glancing at the doctor with a "don't-patronize-me" glare, she managed to  
get her feet on the floor, wobbling slightly as she held the bed until  
the earthquake passed.  
  
"I have to get Ranma and Ukyo," she said, closing her eyes as the world  
spun around her.  
  
"Your abductors? Rest assured, when this is over, they'll be getting all  
the help the medical community can give them," the doctor said, moving  
towards her and reaching for his stethoscope.  
  
Nabiki's resulting scowl drove the doctor back a step, and he sighed.  
  
"Have a seat, Miss Tendo, and in a moment, I'll send in the officer  
assigned to you. You can tell him everything about your kidnapping." He  
quickly checked her over, frowning a little, before turning towards the  
door. Nabiki sighed as she realized how much talking she'd have to do to  
get Ranma and Ukyo out of there.  
  
"Right. My 'kidnapping.'" Nabiki sneered as she sat back down on her  
bed. Then she remembered, "Where's Ryouga?"  
  
"The young man with you? He's still unconscious at the moment. We're not  
quite sure when he'll wake up, but it could be any minute." With that,  
he left, a female officer in plainclothes entering a moment later and  
sitting nearby.  
  
"Feeling a bit better than before, I see. I'm officer Yutani, but you  
can call me Konoko."  
  
"Yutani? Like the company?" Nabiki asked. The officer smiled.  
  
"My husband started it." Nabiki nodded. Yutani Corp. was a small  
business, but Nabiki had invested in it, liking the way it was laid out,  
and had been pleased with the steady growth it had displayed. Shaking  
her head to get her thoughts back on track, she looked at the door, then  
the officer, before speaking.  
  
"Ranma and Ukyo are innocent. This is a big misunderstanding." Officer  
Yutani smiled and scooted closer to Nabiki, taking the younger girls  
hands in hers.  
  
"Nabiki, it's okay now. Those two are under strict surveillance, and  
can't hurt you or anyone else, any more. You don't have to fear telling  
the truth."  
  
"Say what?" Nabiki replied, incredulously. Officer Yutani frowned.  
  
"You don't have to protect them. They are already convicted of killing  
officer Sato."  
  
"But the creature did that!" Nabiki said, realizing after she said that  
how unbelievable it would probably be.  
  
"Creature," Konoko said, flatly.  
  
"Yes. Ranma and Ukyo... and Ryouga were fighting them... whatever they  
were." Nabiki said quietly. Well, she'd started down this path, might as  
well stick to it.  
  
"Well, can you describe this 'creature'?" Yutani said, pulling out her  
pen and paper.  
  
Nabiki went on to describe the creature the others had fought, until  
Konoko held up her hand to signal for her to stop.  
  
"So, two meters, black, bleeds acid, kills indiscriminately..." Nabiki  
nodded, glancing at the window.  
  
Yutani sighed, flipping to a fresh page and hoping the rest of the  
interview wouldn't continue like this.  
  
Ranma glared at the mirror he knew he was being watched behind, and  
briefly considered breaking the weak chains on the handcuffs and jumping  
through the glass. It would probably get him killed, but at least he'd  
go down fighting. The room he found himself in was sanitary and brightly  
lit, a stark contrast to the dull interrogation rooms he'd seen in  
movies. Before he could contemplate further, the door swung open, and  
three people entered, two in suits, and one officer in uniform.  
  
The first man sat down across from him and smiled.  
  
"Ranma? I'm your court-appointed lawyer, Mr. Kajiura."  
  
Ranma ignored him, still staring at the mirror.  
  
"Detective Kano." The other man in the suit said, frowning at Ranma.  
  
Ranma didn't reply, and the detective sat down with a pen and paper,  
flipping through the printed file he'd brought with him for a second  
before setting them down and leaning forward to stare Ranma in the eyes.  
  
"Look, son. It's fairly obvious you don't like me, and after what you  
did to Masanto, the feeling is entirely mutual. So lets get one thing  
straight. You tell me what happened, no bullshit stories about fairy  
tale monsters, and we can both leave each other's company as soon as  
possible."  
  
"Detective" Kajiura said, warningly. The detective nodded, and sat back.  
  
"Well start with some simple yes/no questions, first, then begin to get  
your statement after that. First Question, you are Ranma Saotome, son of  
Genma and Nodoka Saotome, correct?"  
  
Ranma refused to answer, still glaring at the mirror. Kano sighed,  
realizing it would be another one of those condemning silence-cases,  
before starting down the list of questions.  
  
Ranma's gaze never left the glossy reflective surface of the mirror  
throughout the interview.  
  
Ukyo Kuonji looked around the cell in disbelief; her Okonomiyaki-sellers  
outfit the only comfort in the spartan area. All throughout the  
interview, she'd tried to tell the police, her lawyer; anyone who'd  
listen about the creatures, but everyone had treated her like she was  
insane.  
  
Sitting on the hard bed, Ukyo stared down at the cement floor beneath  
her, and wondered what she was going to do now. As her vision blurred,  
tears welling up before falling to the floor steadily, she wished she'd  
just remained silent throughout the interview. As she'd been lead here,  
she could see the angered faces; feel the glares on her back as she was  
paraded through the station. She sobbed as she realized how hated she  
was by every Officer there, and for doing nothing.  
  
The dead officer, his brains eaten by the beast Ryouga had vaporized,  
was on every Officer's mind, and she and Ranma were, in the their eyes,  
his killer.  
  
There was a loud clank as the entrance to the holding area opened, and  
another Officer escorted Ranma to the cell one left and across from her.  
He looked at her, and his angry scowl melted for an instant, before he  
turned towards the cell in which he was to be placed, and stepped  
inside.  
  
When the guards left, Ranma looked over at Ukyo, and sighed.  
  
The two looked at each other for a moment, before glancing away, unsure  
of what to say in their current predicament. Finally, Ranma spoke.  
  
"Sorry for getting you involved in all this, Ucchan."  
  
Ukyo stared at him incredulously, before she began to giggle.  
  
"What's so funny?" Ranma asked, staring at her worriedly.  
  
"I just... You didn't get me involved, sugar. I chose to come along,"  
Ukyo said, staring at the ground and growing serious, "Not that I did  
much good. In the end, Nabiki was more effective than I was."  
  
"Hey, don't go doubting yourself because of that. Just because you  
didn't fight too well doesn't mean you didn't help."  
  
"Gee thanks, Ranma. You sure know how to make a girl feel better."  
  
"Damnit, Ukyo! That's not what I meant. I... What the hell are we going  
to DO?"  
  
"Sit here, I think. Eventually those things will take more people, and  
the police will realize we're not the kidnappers."  
  
"But, those things are out there, killing people and.. they're doing  
that.. whatever they do, too... like... like Akane..."  
  
Ukyo nodded, staring at the floor.  
  
"What about that dead cop, though?" Ranma said, finally. Ukyo shuddered,  
looking at Ranma.  
  
"I don't know, Ranchan. Ryouga destroyed the creature that got him, like  
Nabiki."  
  
Ranma sighed, " I wish we knew where they come from. We could just tell  
the police to go there."  
  
"Well, I think they're from outer space." Ukyo said, looking at Ranma.  
  
"I don't know. Aliens are supposed to be small and gray, with big eyes.  
Those things are demons or something."  
  
"Who says aliens are small and gray?" Ukyo asked.  
  
"It's in all the movies!"  
  
"These aren't movie monsters, Ranma."  
  
"You can say that again. After what they did to... Akane..." Ranma  
trailed off, his posture slumping again, and Ukyo sighed, watching Ranma  
slip back into his depression. Seeing that had a similar effect on her,  
and she moved over to the lumpy cot she shared the cell with, and sat  
down on it.  
  
"I'm going to sleep, Ranma. We'll talk more later."  
  
"Alright," she heard from the other cell. Turning her back to the world,  
Ukyo closed her eyes, ignoring the tears that once again fell freely  
from her eyes.  
  
There was a steady beeping noise to his left. Peeling his eyelids back,  
Ryouga Hibiki turned in that direction to see an EKG steadily matching  
the blood he could feel pulsing through his veins.  
  
Turning to look at the window, he realized he was in a hospital, and it  
was dark out, meaning he'd been out for a few minutes, or, more likely,  
all day. How had he come to be here? Frowning, he tried to think back to  
earlier. He'd been walking through Osaka, when he spotted Ranma and  
Akane...  
  
"Ranma!" He growled, sitting up. The room, steady as can be moments ago,  
suddenly wobbled around him, and he collapsed back as a wave of nausea  
threatened to overtake him.  
  
Trying to remember what had happened afterwards, Ryouga felt his ire  
lessen when his memory reasserted itself. The creatures. The Tendo's.  
His Shi Shi Hokodan. Looking himself over, he realized firing one off at  
point blank range wasn't the smartest of ideas, and decided that, next  
time he faced one of those things, he'd try to keep his distance.  
  
So, Akane was... Dead. Staring at the window Again, Ryouga felt bitter  
tears of defeat leave salty trails down his cheeks as he remembered all  
the times he'd had with her. Then he thought about how she'd died, and  
sat up again, fighting off the nausea. Ranma had said something was  
inside of her. A baby one of those things...  
  
Feeling bile rise in the back of his throat, he thought about the past  
few weeks, and struggled to get out of his bed. He needed to find  
Nabiki. And then, he needed to die.  
  
Nabiki watched Konoko Yutani leave with a sigh. It was obvious nobody  
believed her story, and wondered how many people it would take telling  
the same general story before the police started to believe her. Looking  
at the window, she realized the sun had set while she was talking, and  
crawled back into bed, hoping Yutani would keep her word and let her see  
Ranma and Ukyo soon.  
  
"Nabiki!"  
  
Turning, Nabiki watched Ryouga entered the room, dragging two police  
officers behind him. One pistol-whipped him, hoping to drop the crazed  
kid, but was surprised when, instead of dropping, the kid turned and  
threw him into the wall, hard. The other officer drew his gun, then, and  
Ryouga froze. A figure jumped between the weapon and Ryouga, and the  
officer frowned as he realized it was the girl he was supposed to be  
guarding.  
  
"Move, girl!"  
  
Nabiki scowled, turning to Ryouga, "Lets get out of here."  
  
Ryouga nodded, looking at the hallway, where the officer was trying to  
get around Nabiki, who was blocking the doorway, then at the window,  
where he could see the tops of streetlights. Nabiki stepped back and to  
the side, suddenly, apparently to let the officer inside. Stepping  
forward, Nabiki slammed the door on him, hoping the cracking noise  
wasn't the officer's nose. Ryouga stared at the door for a moment, then  
pushed it shut, throwing the bed up against it.  
  
"Window?" Ryouga asked. Nabiki nodded, and Ryouga used a chair to break  
the glass out of the window, while Nabiki looked for a way to open it.  
Shrugging, she looked down at the slivers of glass littering the  
sidewalk below, and frowned. The officers outside were banging on the  
door, yelling to be let in, and the two looked at the door before  
locking gazes again.  
  
"You're going to have to carry me."  
  
Ryouga froze up, staring at the open-backed hospital gown Nabiki was  
wearing, and feeling his blood pound. Nabiki frowned.  
  
"Damnit, Ryouga! This is no time for modesty! We have to get Ukyo and  
Ranma, and stop these things before they get any worse! The longer we  
wait, the more people... the more families die." Nabiki sighed, thinking  
of her family, then looked at Ryouga, who had regained his composure  
somewhat.  
  
"Hold on tight," he said, somewhat nervously, before scooping her up and  
jumping out the window moments before the door was kicked open.  
  
=====================  
  
Disclaimer: Rumiko Takahashi owns Ranma ½. The Aliens series is owned by  
20th Century Fox. I'd like to thank Rumiko Takahashi and Ridley Scott,  
James Cameron, David Fincher, and Jean-Pierre Jeunet for making such  
wonderful worlds.  
  
Also, the original Alien Design is credited to H. R. Geiger.  
  
Authors Notes: Whoops. Looks like there's going to have to be a part  
three. Some things just don't work out as expected, I suppose. This time  
around, with the antagonist already known from chapter one, I chose to  
develop the plot somewhat, and put a rather craptastic spotlight on the  
remaining heros. Expect to see other familiar faces show up in the next  
part...  
  
Oh, and for those readers who aren't uber-Aliens fans, Officer Yutani,  
and the paragraph about her husband owning Yutani Corp. Was kind of an  
in-joke; Weyland-Yutani is the company in the first three Aliens movies,  
and I thought it'd be cute to throw a reference in there like that.  
  
Finally, I must again thank my prereaders, without which I'd be  
submitting something... not good. So, thanks again, Nate, Parker, and  
Anthony, and also, new prereader WFROSE, who has joined the others.  
  
-Kagato 


	3. Chapter 3

Ukyo awoke to the sound of gunfire, a distinctly uncommon sound in Nerima or Japan as a whole. Wondering if the guard was watching a movie around the corner, she slid off the uncomfortable rack, and tried to peer around the corner. Unfortunately, the position of the bars and the wall towards the end of the room prevented her from seeing anything other than painted cinderblocks.

Another gunshot rang out, this one both closer and louder, and Ukyo paled. She and Ranma had killed one of those things... were they coming for her?

"Ranma?" She asked weakly, a moment before someone outside screamed. The scream died suddenly, and Ukyo shivered, "Ranma! Wake up!"

Ranma shifted on his cot, but continued to ignore her, lost in dreams or memories of happier times. Another shot sounded, the sharper POP of a shotgun, and Ukyo shivered as she heard one of the things' screams, followed by another human shout of pain. They were getting closer.

"RANMA!"

"Huh?" Ranma mumbled, sitting up slowly. Ukyo was about to tell him about what she was hearing when a panic-stricken police officer ran into the room, a pump-action shotgun in one hand, the other arm bleeding profusely from three ragged gashes in his bicep.

"What's happening!?" Ukyo nearly shouted at the man.

"It's... they're... they came..."

"The creatures?" Ranma asked, waking up instantly.

"Yes... I... Maybe... the things..." The officer said shakily, pinning the shotgun to his side with his bloody arm while he fished a couple shells from his pocket and tried to reload the weapon. Three of the five shells fell to the floor, but the officer didn't seem to notice, pumping the weapon once after he was sure his pockets were empty.

"Let us out of here! We're innocent!" Ukyo shouted.

"Innocent?" the officer said, turning to look at her, as if he didn't know what the word meant.

"Yes! Damn it, open these doors! We didn't kill your friend! We tried to-"

There was a deep thump, and Ukyo literally felt the walls shake as something rammed the door leading to the holding area. Outside, she could hear hisses and shrieks, but no more sounds of human life.

"Let us out!" Ranma bellowed, kicking at the bars. Instead of the gratifying crash of the bars falling down, they only bent slightly. The officer gave an insane titter.

"Those bars were reinforced... for martial artists..." he said quickly, jerking as the door shuddered again.

"Let us out! Let us help you!" Ukyo cried, feeling tears stream down her face as she began lunging at the bars futilely. Unlike Ranma, she didn't have the strength to even bend them slightly, instead she just felt her shoulder ache. The door suddenly flew into the far wall, the solid piece of metal twisted into an almost unrecognizable shape.

"No!" Ukyo shouted a moment before one of the creatures skittered into the room, crawling across the ceiling. The officer, who'd been aiming low, tried to bring the shotgun up, but before he made it even halfway, the creature was already in the air, shrieking.

Ukyo backed away as the creature brought its tail around and slapped at the man's bloody arm almost too fast for the eye to see. There was a wet snapping noise, but Ukyo barely had time to register it as the creature's lunging body got within striking range and swung at the man from the other side.

The officer had started falling back, but this only hastened his death, as the claw meant for his head instead caught his throat, tearing out a huge chunk of vital tissue and flinging it towards Ukyo, who was screaming. The body gurgled as blood poured from the ragged wound, and the creature began tearing into it, as if merely killing the officer wasn't enough.

"No," Ukyo said weakly, feeling droplets of blood covering her face, but incapable of wiping them away. She kept her gaze on the creature, as it crouched over the body and began eating the dead officer's now-exposed intestines, taking a couple bites before suddenly turning its monstrous head towards her.

"No!" she whispered as it rose and began stalking towards her cage on two legs.

"Hey! HEY DAMN IT! Come over here!" Ranma shouted, waving his arms and jumping around to draw its attention. He couldn't fire off a Moko Takabisha because the creature was between Ukyo and himself, and the cell bars weren't bent quite far enough for him to squeeze through, yet.

Ukyo felt something bump the back of her knees and she fell back onto her cot silently as her legs gave out beneath her. The creature was staring at her through the bars now, and reached up to grab one, trying to pull them apart enough for it to slip through.

Ranma looked at the shotgun, lying just out of reach, then back at the gap in the bars of his cell, wishing he were just a bit smaller so he could squeeze through.

Suddenly, he realized he _could_ shrink, and lunged at the filthy toilet in the cell with him, punching through the lid and feeling his hand moisten. Scooping out a handful of the blue water, he splashed himself in the face, ignoring the smell and the tingle of the chemicals, and sighed as he felt the curse take effect.

Ukyo, sitting on the cot as the creature reached through the bars at her, trembled, but felt a little hope as the bars meant to hold people like Ranma prevented the creature from reaching her as well.

Suddenly the creature shrieked at her, and its tail shot through the bars, slapping her on the side of the head hard enough to send her reeling. Despite all her training, the blow nearly knocked her out, and she stumbled to the floor, unable to do anything other than moan as she felt the creature's tail push up against her and drag her towards the bars.

Ranma pushed her way through the gap in the bent bars, her eyes glued to the creature's back as she tried to squeeze through as fast as possible. As small as she was, her breasts made the narrow opening near impossible, and she felt tears come to her eyes involuntarily as the bars pushed them in to the point that she could feel her ribs ache. Finally, she was through, and fell to the floor with a gasp, the pain in her chest nearly overwhelming.

The creature turned, its tail snaking back through the bars quickly, and Ranma rolled back as the creature leapt at her, landing where she'd been lying a moment ago.

"Ukyo, are you okay?" she shouted as the creature stood up before her. Ranma frowned, and took a step back, almost tripping on something that slid out from under her foot. Hearing her friend moan she glanced at the offending object, and realized she'd stood on the shotgun.

Weapons weren't something Ranma had much respect for, and all her life she'd been taught that they were a weakness, a crutch that hindered one from their true potential. Firearms, while rare in Japan, were even less respected, and because of that, she'd had no training whatsoever with them. The first time she'd ever touched one was earlier, with Akane, and that had firmly cemented her hatred for the objects. Still, she had no time to build up a Moko Takabisha, and she needed to act _now_.

Kicking up the weapon with her toe, she grabbed the weapon out of the air and spun it towards the creature with a wordless shout, before pulling the trigger. That the creature had managed to coil its tail under it to help launch itself at Ranma when she fired was testament to the thing's own deadly speed, and the pellets struck the thing's shoulder instead of its head as Ranma had intended. The impact with the blast sent the thing's trajectory off enough that it crashed into the bars of Ranma's cell, bending them inward.

Ranma yelped in surprise as two pellets failed to penetrate the chitinous exoskeleton and came back at her, one each entering her arm and chest. Before the creature could take advantage of her surprise however, Ranma spun the shotgun, deflecting a tail thrust before bringing it down on the creature's back. The monster shrieked, and scrambled at the floor. Leaping back, Ranma looked at the shotgun in surprise. The barrel was bent almost 90 degrees, the wooden furniture splintered and falling to the floor in slivers. Tossing the useless weapon aside, she took another step back as the creature reoriented itself and hissed at her.

Ukyo slowly climbed to her feet, using the bars of her cell as the world swum around her. Ranma needed help. Looking down at the dead officer, she squinted at the key ring on his belt, and crouched, wobbling as the world twisted around her, before reaching out and grabbing the keys.

Ranma wasn't sure how she'd beat this thing in this confined room without killing Ukyo, but wasn't about to give up. The creature shrieked again, and Ranma crouched, preparing for another attack. Suddenly, a taloned hand wrapped around her wrist from behind, and she screamed as the hand squeeze hard enough to bruise even her tough skin. Whirling, Ranma grabbed the wrist the hand was attached to and threw the creature, feeling her shoulder almost pop as its spider-like grip on the floor finally came loose.

Ukyo was frantically trying the keys, when suddenly the wall behind her exploded, a large chunk of concrete striking her in the back of the head and sending her to the floor again. Ryouga stared through the abysmally small hole in the wall and scowled, punching it and feeling metal reinforcements bend but not break. Looking through the small hole, he saw Ukyo lying still on the floor, and the dead officer's body, before he looked to the left and gasped as Ranma's girl form stood facing two of the creatures, a third rounding the corner behind her.

"Ranma, behind you!" he shouted, before tearing into the hole rapidly.

Ranma turned enough to spot the third creature out of the corner of her eye, and snarled.

"Get Ukyo, and I'll meet you around the front!" She shouted, leaping back as the two in front of her used their tails to try to impale her and the creature behind her lunged, landing where she'd been. The bladed tails stopped at the last minute, not touching the third, and Ranma grimaced as she realized they were somehow coordinating their attack. Turning her back to the three, she ran, doing her best to ignore the screeches that rose behind her, and the bodies littering the small station. Two more of the creatures rose from behind the desks, blood and flesh dripping from their jaws as Ranma interrupted their feeding. Glancing outside, she was surprised that the sun wasn't up yet. Ignoring the screeches and hisses behind her, Ranma headed for the front of the building.

She hated running, hated not being able to do anything for the people who littered the floor around her, but they were beyond her help, and there were still people out there she had to protect. 'And,' she thought, jumping through the glass window to avoid the creature that had leapt into the doorway to block her, 'I'm not dying until I avenge Akane...'

Ryouga scowled as the reinforced wall refused to give way, and began rapidly poking his finger at sections of the wall, barely feeling the flying chips of cement as the wall seemed to explode. Smelling blood, he reached forward and grasped one of the steel rods that had been implanted in the wall and pulled, slowly widening the gap and shouting at Ukyo.

Ukyo flopped on the floor as the world suddenly and painfully came back to her, and she mumbled something at the idiot yelling nearby, hoping they'd leave her to sleep. Her head was throbbing, and she could feel something trickling down the back of her neck, but her arms weren't cooperating. Suddenly, the past couple minutes came back to her, and she jerked, the blurry world reducing itself to a bright spot at the end of a black tunnel, before slowly returning.

Ryouga saw Ukyo jerk and tremble, and redoubled his efforts at pulling the bars apart. Nabiki shuddered nearby, wishing there was some way for her to help, but knowing she'd only get in the way.

Ranma saw another creature stick its head out of the open manhole outside the police station, and leapt onto the building across the street as one of the things shrieked and leapt at her from the station.

Spotting one on the roof heading towards the side Ryouga was working to free Ukyo, Ranma frowned and leapt, wishing she had the confidence to charge up a Moko Takabisha, but feeling too drained to do much more than shake the creature up. Leaping towards it, she decided to try a different attack, and snapped her arm forward as she descended.

"Kijin Raishuu-Dan!" she shouted, launching a vacuum blade at the creature's exposed neck. The head topped to the roof, and Ranma grinned as she landed beside it, avoiding the spreading puddle of acid as it began eating its way through the roof. Suddenly realizing that Ukyo might still be inside, Ranma jumped over the side, shouting for Ryouga to hurry.

Ryouga snarled at Ranma's shout, knowing the opening was too small for him to squeeze through. Ranma looked at it then pushed Ryouga out of the way, diving through the narrow gap and scooping up Ukyo as the ceiling above her began to discolor and hiss ominously.

Something dripped on Ranma's shoulder, and she suppressed a shout as it began to eat into her skin. Moving with Ukyo towards the hole, Ranma heard Nabiki scream outside, and shoved Ukyo through the hole at Ryouga, hearing something fall to the floor with a muffled splat behind her. Droplets of the creature's acidic blood splattered on her clothes, and she leapt through the hole before ripping her pants off, hopefully before the acid or fumes began affecting her legs.

Nabiki screamed again, and Ryouga turned away, just in time to see Nabiki fall back as a creature landed right where she'd been standing. Ranma leapt forward, kicking the thing in the head and knocking it back, before scooping Nabiki up and running. Ryouga followed, silently praying that his directional sense wouldn't kick in as he carried Ukyo.

Ranma wasn't sure where she was headed, and didn't really care, just so long as she got Ryouga, Ukyo and Nabiki away from those things. Taking stock of herself as she ran, she winced as she felt the throbbing ache in her chest, the sharp pain of a hot piece of metal stuck in the muscle of her arm and her chest, the sting of a diluted acid burn on her shoulder, and a dozen or so cuts she'd sustained jumping through a plate-glass window. Fortunately, aside from being sore from use, her legs seemed to have avoided taking any damage so far, and Ranma briefly thanked her touch-and-go luck for that as she sped through the prefecture.

Ryouga didn't take his eyes off Ranma- _didn't blink-_ as he followed rapidly through the streets of Nerima. Finally, Ranma stopped, and Ryouga had to leap over the girl to avoid running into her. Looking up, Ryouga recognized the Tendo Dojo, and blinked as Ranma suddenly turned away, heading almost back the way they came.

"Ranma? Where the hell-"

"Not there. There's... I can't go back there," Ranma muttered almost too quietly for Ryouga to hear. A few minutes later they landed outside of Ukyo's restaurant and Ranma pulled the door open with her foot, slipping inside and shutting the door after Ryouga had entered.

"Well, now what?" Nabiki asked, staring up at Ranma. Ranma set Nabiki down and winced as the Tendo accidentally bumped into her chest. Nabiki looked at Ranma's chest and frowned. "You need to change back and hope that heals, Ranma. It looks like you ruptured something."

Nodding, Ranma made her way behind the counter, while Ryouga set Ukyo down in a booth.

Nabiki followed Ranma, pulling a first aid kit out from under the counter and made her way over to Ukyo, who was groaning slightly.

Quickly cracking the kit open, Nabiki pulled out some rubbing alcohol and a couple cotton swabs and began wiping away the bloody knot on the back of the chef's head. Ranma, groaning as he turned male and every wound shifted along with him, made his way over to the kit and pulled out

a pair of tweezers before gritting his teeth and digging around for the shotgun pellets in his arm and chest.

Ryouga, not sure how he could help, made his way over to the window and began watching the streets outside for any more of those things.

When Ukyo's head was bandaged as best Nabiki could do, and Ranma had taped and bandaged the largest and worst of his wounds, the two of them stared at each other quietly for a moment before speaking.

"We've got to stop these things..." Nabiki said.

"I have to... I... Nabiki, you can't fight these things..." Ranma said, slowly.

"This is _no_ time for-"

"No, Nabiki, Ranma's right," Ryouga said, interrupting her. Nabiki glared at him, but remained silent.

"Well, we still have to figure out where they're coming from," Ranma muttered, staring at the ceiling and wincing as his shoulder tingled. He'd done his best to clean up the acid burn and dig out the melted metal and roofing material, but it still stung, and he wondered just what kind of crap was leaking into his bloodstream from that.

"I don't see how they're moving around without everyone seeing them," Nabiki said, scowling.

"Sewers," Ranma muttered, remembering seeing one pop out of a manhole outside the police station.

Ukyo groaned, then wheezed, "the other night, Ran-chan... open-sewer..."

Ranma sighed as he remembered meeting Ukyo before the rain the night before his life went to hell.

"So, they're using the sewers to get around," Nabiki said, looking out the window at a manhole cover. "Most of the missing people cases happened around the east side of the commercial district," she continued, then frowned, "I don't remember any cases taking place to the west, where people live."

"So where are they coming from?" Ranma asked.

"The east," Ukyo said softly, managing to point out the obvious.

"Well, yeah, but, I mean, _where_-where?" He emphasized.

"Umm... I might know something about that," Ryouga said, making his way over to the table.

"What do you mean?" Ukyo asked, frowning.

"Well, I was in Akita when -" Ryouga started, before being interrupted.

"Ryouga! This is no time for stories!" Nabiki shouted.

Ryouga frowned at her, and continued, "I met a man, he said he was a vet, and his truck had broken down on the way to Tokyo."

"That's great, Ryouga... but not exactly important," Ranma growled.

"Damn it, Ranma! Listen to me! The guy had a cow with some sort of THING attached to its face!" Ryouga nearly shouted.

Nabiki paled, "you mean..."

Ryouga nodded, "Yes!"

"But," Ukyo said, looking up at Ryouga, "how'd they get to Tokyo?"

"Well, I offered to push him to Tokyo-"

"YOU BROUGHT THESE THINGS HERE!?" Ranma shouted, jumping to his feet.

Ryouga fell back, surprised by Ranma's sudden outburst. "I... I don't know. The thing didn't look anything like those things out there. It was pale and all fingers and..."

"Ryouga," Nabiki crouched before the lost boy, her eyes deadly serious, "listen to me... Where did you take it?"

"I... the vet said he had a friend at the University."

"But Tokyo University is nowhere near here!" Nabiki said, the only one in the room who knew anything about the college.

"It's not?" Ryouga asked, looking surprised.

Nabiki scowled at him, then turned to Ranma, "we have to check it out."

"No, you're catching the first train out of town... Or plane. Ukyo's going with you."

"The hell I am." Ukyo said, pulling herself up so she was sitting more than laying.

"Ukyo, look at you, you're-" He started to say.

"What? I'm _what_, Ranma? Have you taken a look in the mirror lately?" Ukyo suppressed a wobble as the world swam around her, before continuing, "Akane was my friend, too. And Kasumi... no... This is personal. The only way to keep me out of this is by force. And none of us are in great shape; we'll need to work together if we're going to survive this." The Chef shook her head determinedly. "No, I'm going."

Ranma looked at his friend's bandaged head, decided against knocking some sense into her, and then sighed, "Fine. But Nabiki-"

"Oh no you don't! My family was _slaughtered_ by these things... I'll have my revenge. You can _not_ deny me this, Saotome."

Ranma snarled. "Well that's just _fine_, then!" He shouted, throwing his hands up in exasperation as he ranted. "We can _all_ just wander around, wanted by the police and dodging those things like it's all a fucking stroll in the park. Maybe I should invite some classmates, too!"

The three stared at Ranma, surprised at both the outburst, and that he'd given in so easily.

"Okay then, let's go," Ryouga said, standing up. Nabiki stood as well, but Ukyo, when she tried to, stumbled, pulling Nabiki with her towards the floor. Ranma caught them before they could complete their fall, but winced as Nabiki landed against the oozing wound in his chest, and Ukyo draped her arm over the acid burn.

"On second thought," Nabiki muttered, glaring at Ukyo.

"I'm sorry," Ukyo muttered, staring at the floor. Nabiki sighed, looking at the clock.

"No... we're all hurt... Ryouga and I had to break out of the hospital, and despite everything, I feel queasy and unstable, too. We need to rest before we try to go anywhere."

"Rest? We don't have time!" Ranma shouted.

"Then. Make. Time." Nabiki growled through clenched teeth. When Ranma frowned at her, she prodded the bandage on his chest, making eye contact the entire time, and watched him wince in obvious pain. "Unless I'm mistaken, I'm the only one who knows their way to the University anyway. So let's get some sleep."

"Sleep?! How the hell are we supposed to sleep with those things out there?" Ranma asked, incredulously.

"Ryouga and I aren't as hurt, so we'll take turns keeping an eye out. You and Ukyo need it the most," Nabiki retorted logically.

Ranma frowned at her.

"Actually," Ukyo said, looking somewhat annoyed, "aren't concussion victims supposed to be kept awake for 24 hours?"

"Yes," Nabiki mumbled, somewhat surprised the chef knew that, "Still, you and the rest of Nerima's martial artists aren't exactly normal... you might not heal as fast as Ranma, but I think it's safe to let you get some rest... you were unconscious earlier and you came around."

Ukyo nodded, before shuffling off towards the back room. The others followed her, and Ranma paused to look out the windows one last time before closing the door to the stairwell and following the others upstairs.

Staring at the small bed, Ranma began lying down on the floor, before Ukyo nudged him with her foot. "What?" He snapped.

"Get on the bed, Ranma..." Ukyo said, sounding exceedingly tired.

Ranma shook his head, "You take it, Ukyo. It's not right to make you sleep on the floor."

"No, sleep with me," Ukyo insisted, now tugging at his uninjured arm. Ranma pulled his arm from her grip and spun to pin her with a glare, fury in his eyes. "You're thinking about _that_ now? What the-!?"

"No!" Ukyo cried, backing up, "Not like that! I'm freezing! And you're shivering, too. Get in the bed, and we can share body heat."

"I'm not cold," Ranma insisted, moving back towards the center of the room.

Ukyo just sighed and looked at Ryouga, who sheepishly picked Ranma up and put him in the bed beside the wall.

"What the hell do you think you're doing!?" Before he could move, Ukyo had collapsed beside him, and pressed her back up against him as she curled up on the bed.

Ranma glared at her for a moment, and considered climbing over her, but Nabiki and Ryouga both didn't seem to care, and he _was_ feeling chilled. Grumbling to himself, he pulled Ukyo's blanket up over them and turned his back to the chef, before slipping away into sleep. Right before consciousness faded, he heard Ukyo call his name softy.

"Yeah?" he asked, his voice sounding just as tired as hers had.

"I'm also... well... scared," Ukyo said, the final word so soft he might have imagined it. Right before old habits kicked in and he teased her about it, he paused, his sleep-laden mind processing her words briefly before a single answer tumbled out of his mouth and he faded into sleep with her. "Me too."

What felt like a couple seconds later, someone was shaking him. Jerking around, he looked up at Nabiki and Ryouga, who both looked a little better (relatively speaking).

"Time to go, Ranma. You and Ukyo have been asleep for six hours," Nabiki explained.

"Six hours?" He said, sitting up. Looking at the window, Ranma growled at the overcast weather, then looked at Ukyo's bedside clock. 3 p.m.

Nabiki woke Ukyo up, who grudgingly climbed out of bed, looking weak from sleep, but not as shaky as she'd been earlier.

Making her way to her dresser, she quickly pulled out some clothes to change into, and tossed Ranma some clothes before leaving the room. A minute later she returned, looking freshly dressed and a bit more awake. Ranma had pulled on the clothes, ignoring the way they were a little tight in the shoulders and short in the arms and legs, and the four of them headed downstairs.

"One second," Ukyo said, making her way over towards the grill. Reaching behind it, she pulled out another large spatula, and the strap she wore it on when she wasn't holding it, slipping it over head before slinging the weapon.

Ranma nodded, and the four slipped outside and headed northwest, towards the University.

"Ranma, without the police, what's going to happen," Ryouga asked, staring at the barren streets.

"Umm..." Ranma replied, unsure himself.

"There are still police... by now, they've probably got the JSDF on their way, if they're not here already," Nabiki said. A moment later, a military jeep pulled up, and an enlisted man jumped out, his rifle slung but loaded.

"You four, there's a city-wide curfew in effect. Everyone is to remain indoors unless there's an emergency. Some sort of beast is loose in town," the soldier stated.

"God, it's nice to know the authorities have most of the facts," Ukyo muttered.

"There's a lot of them, actually," Nabiki said, frowning. The man said nothing, but by the way he reacted, it was obvious he knew that.

"They're coming from the east, using the sewers," Ranma added. The soldier's eyes widened slightly. He _hadn't_ known that. Before Ryouga, Ukyo, or Ranma could say anything else, Nabiki spoke up, "We were attacked... we're on our way to the hospital."

The soldier looked the four over and nodded, for the first time seeing all the bandages and bruises.

"We'll have to escort you there, whatever these things are, they attacked a police station... killed almost every officer in the area."

Ranma opened his mouth to let the soldier know that they'd been there, when Nabiki elbowed him, accidentally hitting the wound in his chest. Wincing in pain, he nodded slightly as Nabiki scowled at him before asking the soldier if everyone was alright.

"No," the private replied, not giving any more details.

Nabiki paused, before frowning. "Well... if it's as bad as you say, we know our way to the hospital. You could continue your patrol..." She trailed off as the solder shook his head.

"No, ma'am. If something were to happen to you, I'd be held responsible, and I radioed in when I spotted you. There's room in the jeep if you all squeeze in a little."

The four tried to protest without it looking like protesting, but the soldier was resolute, and finally they climbed in, knowing there was no point in arguing further.

"Well, while we're there, we might as well get patched up properly," Ukyo said, prodding the wound on her head gently and wincing as the dull pain spiked at the contact.

Nabiki glanced at the soldier, who was busy talking into a handheld radio while driving, before returning her attention to the others. "The hospital _is_ mostly on the way to the University. We won't be going too far out of our way."

Ranma shrugged, "If nothing else..." He trailed off momentarily, frowning before continuing, "If nothing else, we can tell my pops what's up."

Ryouga sighed. "I just... want to get this over with."

The others nodded in mutual silence as the jeep carried them towards the Hospital.

Author's Notes: Meh.. a little short, but damn, I've been sitting on that forever and a day. I was never satisfied with a few scenes, but only after all this time did I finally realize what I'd done wrong and fixed it. So now, it's here, and ready to go... and hopefully, now that a near-three-year blockage has finally been removed, I can finish this. Hopefully in about three more chapters. Thanks to Parker and Nate, who managed to help resolve my complaints and point out to me that 'new' cannot be used in lieu of 'knew.' Maybe that's one of the causes behind my feelings of incompleteness? Whatever the case may be, hopefully chapter four won't take nearly as long as three has.


End file.
